Survival school journal: Tuesday

The six people in my class.

From my journal in a meadow:

I had stomach pains last night for a couple hours. Lori the guide said it's due to dehydration -- the body shunts blood away from non-vital functions, including the stomach. Then stomach acid builds up.

We hiked for many hours by moonlight. It was exhausting. Then the guides gave us some surprises. [details omitted for future attendees of the course]

We've broken the fast. I thought the food woud taste divine, and that once my body became exposed to food, I woud become ravenous. Neither happened. I ate a banana which tasted the same as usual. They gave us cold mint tea, and I couldn't drink much of it due to taste. I also felt satiated.

We were taught how to navigate using compass and topological map. Now we will navigate ourselves eight miles to a lake.

The guides handed out food for the next four days. It looks in volume the same as what I've eaten in a single meal. It is 1463 calories per day. They picked dense food such as peanuts.

I'm comfortable with the knife now, and have carved a spoon and a bow drill stick.

Learning how to fold our blanket into a pack. I am leaning against a tree in the background.